Houma–Bayou Cane–Thibodaux metropolitan area
In 2014, Forbes magazine ranked Houma-Thibodaux as the eighth-fastest-growing small city in the United States.[4] The median household income for a family in the metropolitan area increased to $61,478 at the 2021 census estimates, making it wealthier than Greater New Orleans ($56,837), Greater Baton Rouge ($58,276), and Metropolitan Lafayette ($53,931) at the time of the census estimates.The Houma–Thibodaux–Bayou Cane region's economy is strongly oriented toward the production of petroleum and natural gas.According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the region registered a 3.5% unemployment rate in February 2009, the lowest of any metro area in the United States at the time.[5] The metropolitan area's main thoroughfare is U.S. Highway 90, which runs east to west and passes directly between Houma and Thibodaux.